Early December has seen the launch of a new scientific database, the Biomedical models Hub, by the Joint Research Centre (JRC), the scientific knowledge service of the European Commission. The new platform utilises Artificial Intelligence to analyse and filter scientific publications. My lovely colleague Juliet was able to give the platform a test drive in the summer.

This new tool has made me reflect on the vast amount of science knowledge in the world and how AI can help spotlight non-animal methods in searches and help advance innovative, humane science.

Sharing Research

Research dissemination is crucial to ensure methods and outcomes are shared to help advance scientific knowledge and understanding. Scientific Publication is the key avenue for doing this. In fact, as a charity, we co-publish our own scientific Journal, Alternatives to Animals (ATLA), to help spread knowledge that could help reduce animal use in science!

Publication in scientific journals helps share scientific progress, but also helps researchers advance their careers, to achieve recognition and funding for further scientific research.

Searching is key

Over 5 million academic articles are published each year in around nearly 47,00 academic journals worldwide. This includes over 1.5 million publications in biomedicine or the life sciences.

Scientists, therefore, rely on searches to review the huge volume of published scientific literature to extract useful information. They might search in order to:

• Help them formulate a new research question (based on what has already been discovered and potential gaps/opportunities)

• Prevent repetition of research and past dead ends (that may waste time and money)

• To keep up-to-date with modern scientific advances in their field

• To find the best research models and methods

• To find established working protocols for a particular technique

• To replace animal use, or implement the remaining 2Rs

Finding a needle in a haystack

Opportunities for using non-animal methods and models must be considered first. This can seem challenging if in your particular field of research the majority of historical research papers involve animal use, as it is for some areas of neuroscience research for example.

But scientists still have an ethical and legal responsibility to answer their research questions without using animals in the first instance. Imagine trying to find one specific needle in a colossal, constantly growing haystack of scientific papers. Yet it is a challenge that must be taken on, particularly as new opportunities to avoid animal use may arise at any time. Understanding how to search for and identify these opportunities is key.

Traditional searches, using platforms like PubMed, rely on scientists identifying and using specific keywords. If a new method is described using slightly different language, or if the paper is from an unexpected field (like engineering, not medicine), the researcher can easily miss a vital opportunity to avoid using animals. This oversight might lead to unnecessary animal use or wasted time inventing something that already exists.

How AI can help

The new Biomedical Model Hub (BimmoH) has been launched to help with these searches. The platform uses AI to data mine hundreds of thousands of scientific papers, acting as a sophisticated research assistant to identify and organise references to relevant scientific papers.

The best bit? The platform focuses solely on human biology-based models, so it automatically does not include animal models, instead reviewing research using, for example, cell-based models, organ-on-a-chip or computer models. This tool can potentially flag alternative methods and models more effectively. It also has the potential to highlight missed opportunities, finding research that may not have been picked up by traditional keyword searches.

What’s next?

The BimmoH platform is a great addition to existing databases to help scientists better explore potential non-animal approaches. As a new platform, it should be used alongside traditional searches still, but as it excludes animal research, it would be great to encourage all scientists to use this tool prior to the consideration of animal use.

In the meantime, we will continue to provide tools and training to ensure replacement searches are conducted robustly and thoroughly. But who knows, maybe one day all research platforms will prioritise the signposting of non-animal research in the first instance and help accelerate us towards a world where animals are no longer used in biomedical research!

This short video gives a quick overview of the new Biomedical models Hub platform: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iuj2z4kVqJg